The Reality of Escape

I'd originally planned on writing about why people bemoaning faults and regrets was a terrible practice and how it's all a matter of perspective, etc., etc., but that can wait for another time. Tonight's entry shall be about escape. No, not some dramatic prison break or even a violent insurrection gone bad where you have to sneak out the back window while those blasted turn coat rebels are rushing at you with the pitchforks and torches you so carefully handcrafted and assembled. No, what I mean is escape from reality. No, not traversing dimensions, I'm speaking of different types of escapes. Escapes from everything.

There are many types of escapes and everyone uses them. Some people use drugs to alter their perception and force everything to be good or interesting. Others perform, acting as someone else to avoid their own personalities or entertaining others to make themselves feel like they have a good, wonderful purpose. Many people create art, finding an escape from trivial matters searching fantasy or even just expressing reality. There are escapes like books, movies, music, and video games that take you to a completely different world, time, life and make you actually experience them. All, to a certain extent, are escapes. So the question becomes, what are we escaping from?

That's a matter of your actual life. Some people find their's too boring. Nothing "interesting" happens, so they create or find alternate realities that provide a brilliant contrast. Other people are unhappy, depressed, and despairing, so they try to push off these emotions and enter another life that involves others that are likely more exciting and fulfilling than whatever miserable existence you're forced into. Sometimes escapes are simply ways to waste time. I've got a spare hour, why don't I go slay a Dragon?

Those are facts, or at least part of them. Most everyone is trying to escape. This leads to the core of the issue. What does it mean and is it unhealthy? Like everything, this too is a matter of perspective. Life is strange thing. Determinism aside, there are infinite possibilities, and really despite the incredible odds against most things happening, if you want to do something and try hard enough, you have a chance at it. But we don't take the chances or courses that are the most exciting or enjoyable. We don't make life interesting. There's no drama, intrigue, suspense, or excitement, just one day after another. We escape into realities that offer more because they do offer these things. But they're also safer, with no "risk" involved. You can't be hurt reading a book (physically, at least, unless it's been booby-trapped, but who booby-traps books nowadays anyway?). The characters are making the decisions, you just get to be entertained.

What does it mean? Should life be interesting? Are all these things really escapes or merely different aspects of reality? By escaping are we just avoiding problems that need to be dealt with, or is living in a fantasy that makes you at least somewhat happy just as good as a reality of happiness? Again, a matter of opinion. I think happiness and intrigue is good no matter where you find it. For all we know, we could be some sort of unfathomable book of the gods, where our dramas are watched and experienced to an extent that we could never dream. But that's not our problem. Our problem is should we choose escape or try to improve reality? Sure, it's not a black and white answer, but the essential is there. Reality is hard. We have to make decisions, have to make "mistakes", have to endure stress, love, terror, depression, despair, jealousy, envy, loathing, and all sorts of horrible things. Sure, happiness, relief, and love help, but the odds seem stacked against us. All this escaping almost implies that those "bad" feelings are our natural state. We pretty much have to escape in order to make it through life. Sure, we can try to work for a better, happier reality, and it's quite possible to achieve it. But it takes effort. It seems to take a sort of ability to predict the future that we humans just aren't capable of. Escaping is so much easier. Is it better? Probably not. But that's the pickle most people are forced into. Billions of people can only get through the day knowing that they can escape it eventually. That's why Hell is such a horrendous and frightening concept. It's inescapable.

So what do we do? Knowing a better present is possible, knowing things will get better if we just use a positive mindset, it seems like we should focus on reality instead of running from it. But we don't. Why? Eh. That's pretty much the reason. What else is there to say? And that's the way things will probably stay, for better or worse.

I bring this up because I think I'm going to try to stop worrying about my one emotional problem and just read more. TV's not cutting it, I need some books! Perhaps I'll be able to survive until I can become a Math teacher and make everyday learning a drama of epic proportions. We'll see.

On another escaping note, I've got 5 ready to go for the joint story, any other takers? I want to start it relatively soon, so we need to set some ground rules. There are two options I can think of for the narration aspect. We can either have all narrators (you) be omnipotent and be able to do anything they want from any character. Or we can "roleplay." For those not dorkish enough to understand, this is where you make a character with a background, personality, etc. (as little or much as ya want) and go through the story only from that character's perspective. Now the first lets your personality and writing style show more. We see David's dark romanticism, my organized chaos, Kelly's incoherent, frenzied whatever etc. But it can also get rapidly out of hand, with little structure. Having a set role, you have confines but it's also interesting. You get to develop a character, make more interesting plot twists, and generally have a more structured story.

The way I was thinking of organizing posting would be randomly assigning an order. For instance, Dylan David Kelly Elizabeth Ellen Ferdinand Horatio Alfonzo Bobbmantha etc. Then you'd post in that order and continue in a cycle like that. We're all online so much, it shouldn't be too difficult. There's enough so that it wouldn't be too much of a wait, but you should be able to get in two entires a week or so. If we get one or two more, we can decide if we'll allow passing. As far as a subject or premise, we can either decide as a group on a theme or let me search the depths of randomness and decide on it.

So you guys need to post on what you'd prefer and any suggestions. Don't be influenced by others, do what you think would be the most interesting/enjoyable for you. And no wishy-washy answers, I want definitive decisions! So you've got your mission, this blog will self-destruct in, oh, a few years or so.

Thanks for sticking through all that, I know how tedious these things can be (espcially ridiculous rants). Being verbose is a blessing and a curse. Until next time...